The city of Nuremberg, whose five games include appearances by England and the USA, expects visitors to enjoy its medieval charm, gingerbread and bratwurst – but not without recalling its dark past.
By Mike Woitalla
Executive Editor
Soccer America
England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has made a plea to his teamÆs fans to refrain from chants referring to World War II:
''We have shown great improvement in fan behavior, but I would urge our supporters to stop chanting the song about '10 German bombers.' This is clearly very disrespectful and it is important that we respect our German hosts.''
In Nuremberg, where England plays Trinidad & Tobago on June 15, it will be seen whether a sobering exhibit of the cityÆs Nazi past will encourage or
discourage fans from such behavior.
On their way to Franken Stadium, which lies in the middle of the former Nazi Party Rally Grounds, fans will encounter 23 nine-feet-tall multilingual information panels chronicling the Nazi era and NurembergÆs role. The Rally Grounds include the 1.2 mile-long ''Great Street'' (Grosse Strasse), where more than 100,000 Hitler Youth marched before the dictator, the Congress Hall and the Zeppelin Field, site of torch-lit rallies.
''The question how society in the Federal Republic of Germany deals with its National Socialist past will be almost unavoidable,'' reads a description of exhibition on the local organizing committeeÆs Web site. ''Because of the monumental scale of the remnants of Nazi buildings … it is downright impossible to 'overlook' them. … A recommended round tour will enable visitors to get to know the entire area in a purposeful way.
''At some locations, visitors can view today's area through glass windows depicting the historic situation, superimposing past and present in the eye of the beholder.''
The history lessons will include Julius Streicher, a leading Nazi ideologue who published anti-Semitic propaganda, and the post-war Nuremberg Trials, where Streicher was among the war criminals convicted and hanged.
The exhibition was the idea of Nuremberg Mayor Ulrich Maly.
''We really donÆt have an alternative,'' Maly told the Times of London. ''ItÆs not that we are cultivating a Nazi image for ourselves. We already have one. We took a long hard look at the things for which Nuremberg is famous and it boils down to the medieval architecture, the Christmas market, the painter Albrecht Duerer and, well, the Nazis.''
Wrote the TimesÆ German correspondent Roger Boyes: ôThe irony is striking. The British Government wants to use the World Cup to revise hostile stereotypes of England fans and achieve a breakthrough in Anglo-German relations. … But the Nurembergers, out of the best of motives, risk reinforcing the Germans-as-Nazis stereotype that both governments have been so anxious to discard. It does not take a big leap of imagination to see England fans mimicking the goose-step march.''
That, according to, Christian Sachs, spokesman for GermanyÆs Interior Ministry, could be risky, because of German laws prohibiting Nazi symbols or actions.
''It doesn't matter if someone is doing the goosestep, raising their arm in the Hitler greeting or handing out swastikas, these are all crimes in Germany and can be punished with up to three years in jail,'' he said.